1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to refrigerators and, more particularly, to an anti-falling device provided in a refrigerator to prevent the refrigerator from falling flat on a front of the refrigerator.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is well known to those skilled in the art, refrigerators are electric appliances that are provided with refrigeration systems and that store food to maintain freshness of the food for a lengthy period of time. As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional refrigerator includes a cabinet 1 that defines an appearance of the refrigerator, with a storage chamber defined in the interior of the cabinet 1 and open at the front. The storage chamber is divided into a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment by a partition wall. In the conventional refrigerator, the freezing compartment preferably stores frozen food therein, while the refrigerating compartment preferably stores cold food therein.
A door 2 is mounted to the front of the cabinet 1, thus allowing a user to open the storage chamber. The door 2 is hinged at an inside edge thereof to the front of the cabinet 1, so that the door 2 is rotatable around the hinged joints to open or close the storage chamber.
Several door shelves are installed on the inner surface of the door 2 such that the shelves are arranged in a plurality of parallel stories. Therefore, foods and/or containers containing foods, such as beverage bottles, are preferably stored on the door shelves as well as on the shelves arranged in the storage chamber.
The door 2 is increased in gross weight since the weight of foods stored on the door shelves is added to the net weight of the door 2, so that the center of gravity of the refrigerator is shifted to the front of the cabinet 1, possibly causing the refrigerator to fall flat on the front unexpectedly. Such a possibility of falling flat on the front of the refrigerator is increased when the heavy door 2 is opened.
In an effort to prevent such a problem of unexpected falling of the refrigerator, an anti-falling device 4 according to an embodiment of the conventional art may be used with a refrigerator, as shown in FIG. 1.
The anti-falling device 4 for refrigerators includes a support bracket 5 that is mounted to a wall 3 of a building by using a setscrew 5a. The anti-falling device 4 also includes a support member 6 that is mounted to the bracket 5 by driving another setscrew 5a to hold tightly the rear portion of the top wall of the refrigerator's cabinet 1, which stands against the wall 3.
If the upper portion of the refrigerator leans forward to fall flat on the front due to the heavy door 2, the rear portion of the top wall of the cabinet 1 is stopped by the support member 6 of the anti-falling device 4, preventing the refrigerator from falling flat on the front.
In addition to the anti-falling device 4 of FIG. 1, another anti-falling device 7 has been proposed and used, as shown in FIG. 2. As shown in the drawing, the anti-falling device 7 according to the second embodiment of the conventional art provides that the cabinet 1 of a refrigerator is directly screwed, using a setscrew 9, to a support member 8 that is mounted to a wall 3 against which the refrigerator stands.
That is, the anti-falling device 7 of FIG. 2 includes a support member 8 that is mounted to a wall 3 and a setscrew 9 that fixes a predetermined portion of the top wall of the cabinet 1 to the support member 8. Therefore, the anti-falling device 7 directly holds the cabinet 1 to the support member 8 mounted to the wall 3.
Refrigerators are typically installed in rooms of buildings while standing against walls 3, with the rear wall of a cabinet 1 placed close to a wall 3 without leaving a substantial space between the cabinet 1 and the wall 3. Therefore, when the rear portion of the cabinet 1 needs to be cleaned or repaired, a user must move the refrigerator away from the wall 3 to create a substantial space between the cabinet 1 and the wall 3.
However, when an anti-falling device 4 or 7 is used and a refrigerator must be moved away from a wall 3 to clean or repair the rear portion of the cabinet 1, a problem occurs.
That is, in the anti-falling device 4 of FIG. 1, the support member 6 tightly holds the rear portion of the top wall of the refrigerator's cabinet 1 and prevents the cabinet 1 held by the anti-falling device 4 from being moved away from the wall 3. Therefore, in order to move the cabinet 1 from the wall 3, the setscrew 5a must be unscrewed and the support member 6 must be removed from the bracket 5 prior to moving the cabinet 1. After cleaning or repairing the rear portion of the cabinet 1, the cabinet 1 is moved backward to a position close to the wall 3, and the support member 6 is mounted to the bracket 5 by driving the setscrew 5a again. The anti-falling device 4 is thus inconvenient for a user who wants to move the refrigerator.
In the anti-falling device 7 of FIG. 2, the cabinet 1 of a refrigerator is fixed to the support member 8 by using a setscrew 9, preventing the cabinet 1 held by the anti-falling device 7 from being moved away from the wall 3. Therefore, in order to move the cabinet 1 from the wall 3 to clean or repair the rear portion of the cabinet 1, the setscrew 9 must be removed to separate the cabinet 1 from the support member 8. After cleaning or repairing the rear portion of the cabinet 1, the cabinet 1 is moved backward to a position close to the wall 3, and the cabinet 1 is fixed again to the support member 8 by driving the setscrew 9. This anti-falling device 7 is thus inconvenient for a user.